X5 with third row. Try to get the real sports suspension. Get a Thule rooftop box as well, because once you deploy the third row, there isn't much cargo room left.

Or, wait for the new 3 wagon.

Or, wait for the X7.

There really is an advantage to having something taller on the highway. And the X5 visibility from its greenhouse is great.

Mercedes E63. Although my spouse really didn't like the one she drove (lots of power lag.) Perhaps the new engines have fixed the problem in the current model.

Did she drive the E63 wagon? I remember your comments on the standard e wagon being a dog, but didn't know you sampled the e63 as well. I was bummed when you commented how un-fun the e wagon was, I had high hopes that it would be our next car.

Did she drive the E63 wagon? I remember your comments on the standard e wagon being a dog, but didn't know you sampled the e63 as well. I was bummed when you commented how un-fun the e wagon was, I had high hopes that it would be our next car.

If you really need to put 3 people in the back for long periods of time, I guess it depends on the kids. I wouldn't want to risk hours of non-stop "STOP TOUCHING ME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! DAAAAADDD!!!!!!!! MMMOOOOOOOOOOOOOMMMMMMMMM!!!!!!!!!!!!"

OTOH, my sister-in-law's family does all their long distance traveling in a Nissan Frontier with the 16, 12, and 9 year old kids in the back seat and they don't seem to have problems.

Nick's rental idea is what I'd go with if I were you, especially given how close you are to the airport.

Something else to consider, which I offer only to see you scoff "no", is an old school SJ Jeep Wagoneer as a third (er, fourth) vehicle.

So the play here is you'd unload the Golf R and get a "larger than a Model Hamburger" second car to take on trips to the beach?

Is the driving requirement here 1) more luggage space or B) more elbow room for rugrats? If B, there isn't much other than "three row SUV" that fits the bill. Any sedan type thing is going to be about the same amount of space as a Model Hamburger for three kids across, right? I may be totally wrong, an Accord may truly have more hip / shoulder room than a 3. It certainly looks larger. But at that point why not just get rid of both the Golf R and the 3 and drive an Accord? Financially and functionally that makes the most sense.

If the answer is 1), some kind of cool hatchback/wagon type thing might be the answer. Panamera (though I hesitate to call that dog-taking-a-dump "cool"), Mercedes/AMG wagon (how much ya got to spend on maintenance and repairs?) might be options.

Haven't you for years promoted the merits of various Ford EcoBoost SUV things (Edge, Flex, etc, I can't keep those things straight)? Sounds like it's time to put your money where your mouth is At least they'll (probably) be cheap to own and operate.

It's really a hip room thing in the back seat. The Model S is wide enough that three across is doable (that's one of the reasons I got one, because back when I needed car seats, it would take 3 across). The Model 3 is probably not, at least comfortably. In every other way the 3 and S are roughly equivalent, though because the S is a hatchback it can accept bulky cargo that the 3 can't--but the trunk opening in the 3 is surprisingly large.

I like Nick's plan. Renting is a pain but if we are really talking about 1 or 2 trips a year, it makes more sense than driving some giant tank around (and parking it--both my wife and I park in underground garages).

But ha ha on Ecoboost things. Yes, I am hoist on my petard there. The current gen Explorer blows, but I suspect the new one is going to be a lot more interesting to drive.

Maybe I'm the only one that feels this way, but rooftop carriers are a pain in the ass across the board.

Suburbans (Expeditions, etc) are the perfect rental vehicles. I can't see a reason to ever buy one. They are absurdly expensive new, and relatively cheap to rent (every time I've gone to rent one they are cheaper than a Chrysler minivan... odd).

Anyway, this is my way of saying I agree with Nick... keep the cars you have for now and when you make your first trip, go rent something.